Advantages

Disadvantages

Great alternative to the leading brand

I've always been a fan of the Heinz Organic beans, I loved the texture of the beans and the yummy rich tomato sauce however due to the credit crunch I decided to take Martin Lewis's advice and drop a brand on much of my shopping to see if I could save a few pennies.

I wasn't convinced that I could be persuaded to really commit to another brand of beans because I've always truly believed that when it comes to beans Heinz is the only way to go but I thought I'd give Tesco's own brand organic range beans a try.

As I have 2 small girls Baked Beans are pretty much a cupboard staple in our house and nothing can beat beans on toast for a quick nutritious lunch packed full of protein. The tescos Organic range is quite easily identifiable as the tins have a black label with the word organic quite large white type and they are usually found next to the Heinz organic beans.

The beans come in a standard 420g tin with a ring pull to open the can. They are considerably cheaper than the Heinz brand and I believe the price at the moment is approx 45p compared to a whopping 74p for the Heinz. That really is a great saving so I truly believed the flavour and taste would be the compromise. I was wrong the sauce is thick tasty and full of favour and the beans themselves have a great texture. I found them to be equally as delicious as Heinz and there is no going back for me.

Comments

Advantages

Disadvantages

Really good beans which make a really good alternative to Heinz!

Baked beans! Everyone loves these, they're a great source of protein and very versatile too!

We changed over to Tesco organic baked beans from Heinz organic while trying to reduce our shopping bill as a result of me being on maternity leave. I must admit I actually prefer these beans much more! The can is a standard 420g size and has the usual organic black label with Tesco organic written on it, a tree being present in the O of organic! There is also a picture of a jacket potato with some baked beans on top.

On opening the can, a nice beany smell comes out - some baked beans smell really sweet but these ones don't, something to bear in mind if you're trying to keep your sugar intake down! The beans are a good size and are nice and soft too without being mushy! The sauce is, as you would expect, a tomato flavour and it's nice and thick. We probably eat baked beans a few times a week - whether with a jacket potato for lunch or on toast or to go with bangers and mash for supper, there are lots of uses for this food! With it being classed as a "low G-I" food, baked beans will also keep you feeling full for longer as they release their sugars slowly - leaving you less likely to be reaching for a snack soon after a meal!

Baked beans can either be heated gently on a stove in 4-5 minutes (stir frequently to stop them catching on the bottom!) or, as we do, in a microwave in 2 minutes! Any beans not cooked (so if you only use half the can) should be stored in a suitable covered container (not the can) in the fridge and eaten within 2 days.

The following nutritional information has been taken from the Tesco website. A serving counts as half a can! It is worth noting that a whole can gives you half of your maximum recommended salt intake for the day so if you eat other foods high in salt you may want to look at low salt alternatives for your baked beans!

Name Per Serving Per 100g

Energy 710kJ (170kcal) 340kJ (80kcal)

Protein 9.7g 4.6g

Carbohydrate 30.2g 14.4g

Sugars 8.2g 3.9g

Fat 0.8g 0.4g

Saturates 0g trace

Fibre 8.6g 4.1g

Sodium 0.6g 0.3g

Salt Equivalent 1.6g

The can is also able to be recycled along with the rest of your green waste!